Wire drawing machine



. Feb' 10, l1942- J. R. GEORGE Erm. 2,272,195

WIRE DRAWING MACHINE ATTORNEYS Feb. 10, 1942. J. R. GEORGE Erm.

WIRE! DRAWING- MACHINE Filed June 28, 1939 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 IN VENT ORS Patented Feb. 10, 1942 2,272,195 WIRE DRAWING MACHINE Jerome R. George, Marion, and Kenneth B. Lewis, Worcester, Mass., assignors to The Aetna-Standard Engineering Company, Youngstown, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Application June 28, 1939, Serial No. 281,666

7 Claims. (Cl. 205-14) can be operated for long periods of time without This invention relates to wire drawing machinery, and more particularly to continuous Wire drawing machines in which the wire is drawn continuously through a series of dies to effect, in a single apparatus, a series of reductions in the size of the wire.

Continuous wire drawing machines heretofore have generally 4been of two types. In one type, as exemplified by the machine disclosed in the Connor Patent No. 1,198,111, a series of blocks or drums are provided which are driven at speeds to compensate roughly for the elongation of the wire in the successive drafts and the drums are arranged to permit an accumulation of wire thereon to allow steady operation of the machine for some time even though the speeds of the various drums are not in exact proportion to the elongation of the wire. In practice the gearing of the Connor machines is arranged so that each block or drum operates at a speed with respect to the speed of operation of the other blocks or drums and with respect to the elongation effected in each die such that wire will slowly accumulate on each drum. Machines of this type are advantageous in that the accumulation of the wire on the drums gives the wire time to cool considerably between successive drawing operations. This delay -is especially advanta' geous in conjunction with the drawing of high carbon wire. Also in machines of this type, a slight amount of twist is imparted to the wire,

rdue to the fact that it is withdrawn axially from the drum or block, which results in more uniform wear of the dies. This type of machine is disadvantageous, however, in that the increasing accumulations of wire on the blocks must be run olf at intervals of say two or three hours, and after each run oi the machine must be rethreaded, an operation which requires considerable time.

The other general type of continuous wire drawing machine embodies a series of drums around which the wire is turned only a few times. The number of turns on each drum remains constant during the operation of the machine and the wire is withdrawn from the drums in a tangential direction rather than in an axial direction as in the Connor type of machine. In some machines of this sort the wire is permitted to slip on the drums or blocks to compensate for inaccuracies in the speeds of the drums, and4 in other machines, individual, automatically operated speed control devices are provided for each drum, the mechanisms being arranged to adjust the relative speeds of the drums to the elongastopping, but have a serious disadvantage, particularly in modern wire drawing operations where the wire is subjected to a severe reduction in each die, in that there is little opportunity for the wire to dissipate its heat and to rest between the successive dies. As a result, machines of this type can not be operated at as high speeds as the speeds of operation possible in machines where ample time for cooling and resting is provided. 'Ihe heat developed adversely affects v some types of wires, such as wires of high carbon steel. Also the heat is apt to destroy the coating on the wire, which may result in damage to the dies. Y

It is a general object of our invention to provide a continuous wire drawing machine embodying the advantages of both types of prior art machines as noted above and eliminating the disadvantages of each type. It isa further object of our invention to provide continuous wire drawing machines which can be operated continuously for indefinitely long periods of time and in which the wire is given an opportunity to rest and dissipate its heat between each drawing operation.'

' Another object is to provide a machine which tion of the wire. Machines of this general type will produce wire of uniform characteristics over long periods of time. A further object is to provide such a machine in which the wire may be given a slight amount of twist so that the wear on the dies will be uniform. Further objects and advantages of our invention will become apparent from the following description of a preferred form thereof reference being made to the accompanying drawings. The essential characteristics are summarized in the claims.

Our invention, in its preferred form, contemplates a continuous wire drawing machine embodying a series of dies and associated blocks or drums, each block being driven by a variable speed drive and each block being arranged so that it can accumulate and hold a reserve of wire to permit the wire to rest and dissipate its heat between successive dies. The speed of each block or drum may be controlled independently of the speed of every other block or drum so that the amount of wire accumulated or held in reserve on each drum can be maintained substantially constant, or can be varied at the will of the operator. By this arrangement the amount of accumulation on each drum can be controlled so that the wire will be sufficiently cooled and permitted to rest between successive drafts, and the machine can be operated indefinitely without the necessity for running off the wire on the drums.

Preferably, the blocks are water cooled, the com bination of adequate cooling and rest between drafts resulting in the production of wire having excellent physical characteristics.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is an elevation of a preferred form of machine embodying our invention and Figure 2 is a plan view of the machine shown in Figure 1.

As shown in the drawings a preferred form of our machine may comprise a suitable frame or bench Idpreferably in the form of a box-like structure having an upper surface II supported from base members I2 by vertical members such as the members I3 and I4. Die boxes I5, I 6 and I1 are suitably mounted on the upper member II and support suitable dies I5a, I6a and Ila of any desired construction therein. The wire is drawn through the die boxes I5, I6 and I1 and associated dies by drums or blocks I8, I9 and 20, respectively. Preferably the dies are adjustably mounted in the die boxes, the die boxes illustrated herein being described in detail and claimed in the copending application of K. B. Lewis, Serial No. 271,541, led May 3, 1939. In the drawing our machine is shown as including three dies and three blocks or drums, but those skilled in the art will appreciate that our invention is applicable to machines embodying two dies and blocks or any number greater than that. If the machine embodied only two dies, preferably die box I6 and associated drum I9 would be eliminated while if the machine were to embody more than three dies, additional units duplicating the die box I6 and drum I9 and associated mechanisms would be added between drum I8 and the finishing drum 20.

The drums I8, I9 and 2U are mounted for ro-` tation about vertical axes on suitable bearings carried by the bench I0, and may be driven by any convenient variable speed vmechanisms such as, for example, the variable speed motors 25, 26 and 21, which are connected to drive the drums I8, I9 and 20, respectively through exible couplings 28, 29 and 30 and worm reduction gearing indicated generally at 3I, 32 and 33. 'I'he motors are preferably arranged to be stopped and started simultaneously by means of a starting switch S controlled by the bar 35 extending throughout the length of the machine, While the speed of the individual motors may be controlled independently by rheostats 36, 31 and 38. We prefer to employ shunt motors to drive the blocks or drums and to control the speed, and in that case the rheostats 36, 31 and 38 control the strength of the motor elds.

In operation the wire W is led from a supply reel (not shown) through the die box I5 and associated die I5a where it is given the rst reduction in diameter, then drawn from the die tangentially to the llet at the base of the cylindrical portion 40 of the drum I8. As the drawing operation proceeds the wire drawn from the die forces the convolutions of wire wound on the cylindrical portion I4 to slide upwardly to the portion 4I where the surface of the drum is slightly tapered to permit contraction of the wire as it cools 01T. The cooling is preferably accelerated by employing water cooled drums, a preferred form of drum being disclosed and claimed in the copending application of Clarence L. Taylor, Serial No. 296,332, filed September 25, 1939. Above the portion 4I the coils of the wire are supported by vertical posts 42 spaced circumferentially around the drum and mounted near ne periphery of the portion 4I. The portions lil I0 and 4I and post 42 thus provide space to permit the accumulation of a considerable quantity of wire on the drum.

The wire is withdrawn from the drum in a generally axial direction through a guide ring 45 carried by a chain 46 slidably mounted in a circumferential groove in the member 41 which is supported by the post 42. From the guide ring t5 the wire is led upwardly over a pulley or sheave 48 supported by a bracket or arm 49 suitably mounted on the bench I Il,

From the sheave 48 the wire is led downwardly to the sheave 50 which guides it to the die box I6 and its associated die. The wire is drawn from the die in tangential direction onto the drum I9 which in all material respects may be similar to the drum I8 just described and which includes a cylindrical portion 40a, a ta pered portion 4Ia, post 42a, a guiding loop 45a mounted in the chain 46a supported on an upper member 41a. As before the wire is conducted from the guiding loop 45a to pulley 48a and thence downwardly to the pulley 50a which de livers the wire to the die I1.

The finishing block 20 is preferably of slightly diierent construction from the blocks I8 and I9 to facilitate removal of the nished wire from the machine. Thus the block 20 includes a cylindrical portion 5I and a tapered portion 52 generally similar to the portions 48 and 4I but provided with radial slots as indicated at 53 to receive tongs (not shown) for removing the wire from the block. Also the rods 54 are provided with outwardly extending end portions 55 to retain the wire on the block and the top ends of the rods are arranged to be turned inwardly to permit the coiled wire to be lifted upwardly ofi the block.

In starting the machine in operation the operator points the wire or rod, threads it through the diebox I5 and die I5a and winds a number of turns on the block I8 by means of tongs in a manner known to those skilled in the art. The tongs are then disconnected and the end of the wire bent around one of the posts 42 and the machine operated until a considerable number of turns have accumulated on the drum I8 preferably until the portions 40 and 4I are full of wire and a few turns have accumulated on the post 42. Then the wire is threaded through the die I6a, wound on drum I9, threaded through the die I1, and sufficient wire acciunulated on the drum 20 so that there will be no slipping of the wire thereon. The operator then adjusts the rheostats 36, 31 and 38 to approximately the correct speeds for the elongation being effected in the respective dies.

By observing the motion of the guide 45 and the chain 46 the operator can determine the relation between the speed at which wire is being fed to a given drum and the speed at which the wire is being withdrawn from the drum. If the wire is being fed and withdrawn at identical speeds, then the same number of turns will remain on the drum and the guide 45 and chain 46 will remain stationary, the chain sliding in the groove in the member 41. If wire is being withdrawn from the drum faster than it is being supplied to the drum then the guide 45 and chain 46 will rotate in a direction opposite to the direction of the drtm, i. e., in the embodiment shown in the drawings, the guide will rotate in a clockwise direction while the drum is rotating in a counter-clockwise direction. On the other hand if wire is accumulating on the drum the guide will rotate in the same direction as the drum, but at a slower speed. The speed of rotation of the guides gives the operator an accurate indication of the speed at which wire is accumulating on or being withdrawn from the drum, and furnishes himy with a guide togovern his adjustments of thgrheostats. Thus, if the operator desires to operate the machine continuously, welding succeeding coils of wire to each other, the motors can be adjusted so that substantially constant accumulations of wire will be operator.

held on each drum, readjustments being made as often as necessary to compensate for wear in the dies' or changes in conditions of operation of the machine or characteristics of the wire. If, on

the other hand, it is desired to operate the machine as a machine of the Connor type or to impart a desired degree of twist to the wire, the wire can be permitted to gradually accumulate on the drums until such time as it is necessary to run off" the wire on the machine. Generally speaking, there will always be slight changes in the amounts of wire accumulated on the drums so that a slight degree of twist will always be imparted to the wire, the twist beinginsuilicient to adversely aiect the qualities of the wire but sufflcient to prevent uneven wear of the dies.

From the foregoing description of a preferred form of our invention it will be evident that we have provided a wire drawing machine capable of obtaining results superior to those of the machines of the prior art. In our machine the advantageous features of prior art machines are retained while the disadvantages are eliminated. Our machine can be operated continuously over long periods of time without the necessity for running off the wire of the machine and re threading it, and at the same time the wire is delayed suftlciently between successive dies to permit the wire to cool and rest. In our machine there is no backward slipping of the wire on the drums. The operator can accurately control the twist imparted to the wire, thus insuring uniform quality of the finished wire, and even wear of the dies. Because of the fact that the wire is delayed between successive drafts, the quality of the wire is improved and the speed of operation of the machine can be increased. The machine is of simple and sturdy design, and as the motors can be operated throughout a wide range of speeds, the operation of the machine can readily be varied to suit different conditions and different wire sizes. The machine may be readily controlled and adjustedby the operator, the speed of the various drums being Yadjustable between wide limits, at `the discretion of the operator, to produce the desired results.

In the foregoing specification we have described a preferred form of our invention in detail. It is to be understood that the foregoing description is given merely by way of example and those skilled in the art will appreciate that the inven'- tion may be modied in various respects without departing from the spirit and scope thereof. Therefore it is to be understood that our patent is not limited in any manner other than by the appended claims when given the range of equivalents to which our patent may be entitled.

We claim:

1. In a continuous wire drawing machine of the type in which wire is withdrawn in an axial diing said said blocks, and separate control means for each block for adjusting the speed of each block without stopping said blocks independently of the speed of every other block so that the relationship between the rate at which wire is being drawn onto any block and the rate at which it is being withdrawn lfrom the block is at all times under the control of the operator whereby the amount of yaccumulation and time of cooling on each drum may be accurately controlled by the 2. In a continuous wire drawing machine of the type in which wire iswithdrawn from each block at aspee'd' independent of the speed at which Wire is being drawn onto the block, a plurality of wire drawing blocks, continuously operable variable speed means for driving said blocks, a single control for starting and stopping all of said blocks and separate control means for each block adjusting the speed of each block independently of the speed of every other block without stopping said blocks so that the relationship between the rate at which wire is being drawn onto any block and the rate at which it is being withdrawn from the block is at all times under the control of the operator.

3. In a continuous wire drawing machine of the type in'which wire is withdrawn from each block at a speed independent of the speed at which wire, is being drawn onto the block, a plurality of wire drawing blocks, a variable speed electric motor for driving each block and rheostats adapted for continuous operation associated with each of said motors for independentlyv adjusting the speed of said blocks without stopping said blocks so that the relationship between the rate at which wire is being drawn onto any block and the rate a't which it is .being withdrawn from the block is at all times under the control of the operator.

4. A continuous wire drawing machine comprising a plurality of dies, a plurality of blocks for drawing the wire through said dies, said blocks being adapted to carry a reserve or accumulation of wire thereon, means for withdraw ing the wire from said .blocks in an axial direction and for guiding the wire to the succeeding die, individual motor drives for each of said blocks and means, adapted for continuous operation, for varying the speed of said motor drives without stopping said blocks to vary the speed of each of said blocks independently of the speed of the other blocks.

5. A continuous wire drawing machine comprising a plurality of dies, a plurality of blocks for drawing the wire through said dies, said blocks being adapted to carry a reserve or accumulation of wire thereon, means for withdrawing the wire from said blocks in an axial direction and for guiding the wire to a succeeding die, individual motors for driving each of said blocks,

means for starting and stopping all of said morection and guiding the wire to the die associated with a succeeding block, means for driving said' blocks and means, adapted for continuous operation, for independently adusting the speed of each of said blocks without stopping said blocks while the machine is operating whereby the ratio between the speeds at which wire is being drawn onto and withdrawn from the block's may be varied at the will of the operator.

7. In a wire drawing machine, a die, a block for drawing wire through the die and adapted to 10 carry an accumulation of wire thereon, variable speed means for driving the block, means for withdrawing the wire from the block in an axial direction, means for driving said withdrawing means, a guide mounted for rotation with respect 15 

